1st
Quarter 2001-2002
Call to Worship (Based on Psalm 122)
Leader: I was glad when the Lord called us, "Let us go to the house of the Lord!"
People: Our feet are standing within your gates, O Jerusalem.
Leader: The Lord calls us to pray for shalom, the Peace of the Lord.
People: The Lord calls us to work for the peace of Jerusalem, and for all our lands.
All: May all who pray and work for peace prosper under the Lord's care.
Prayer of Confession
O God of love, O God of peace, we confess that we do not always follow your ways of peace. We are quick to express our anger at slights and perceived wrongs done to us, and slow to forgive. We so easily fail to see our own wrongs done to others. We neglect justice, consume far more than we need as we seek what we call the good life. Forgive us for thinking that we can exist as an island of prosperity amidst an ocean of poverty and wrong. By your Spirit make us aware of the needs around us and enable us stand against all forms of evil, both those without and those within us. Renew us so that we might rededicate ourselves to be useful servants of the One who came "to serve, not to be served." Amen.
Prayer of Dedication
Ever loving God, you have brought us through tragic and joyful times, bestowing on us the gifts of faith, hope and love. Now we respond to your goodness with a small portion of what you have blessed us. May these gifts further the peace of Jerusalem, and of all cities and nations, through the work of the church. Amen.
Pastoral Prayer
Gracious God, our Creator, though the terrible events of last September are months behind us, still the sadness and the pain lingers on. We continue to pray for those who mourn, that they might claim our Lord Jesus' promise, "Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted." As your people may we continue to witness to a concern for all humankind, even those who turn to evil ways to call the world's attention to their oppression. We pray for our national leaders, and those of all nations, that they might work to lift the burdens of injustice that prevent so many of your children from living full and prosperous lives. Thus, as we join with the Psalmist and "pray for the peace of Jerusalem," we also join with your angels in singing "Peace on earth, good will to all."
We pray for peace in our own lives and homes. Help us to listen to one another, even as we desire to be heard. May we not think too highly of ourselves and our own opinions, but, led by your Spirit, may we be open to others, even to those whose words hurt or stir us to anger. We thank you for the many times when you have led us in your way and have been with us hearing our prayers, healing our wounds and granting us so many blessings. In you, and only in you, do we find comfort and courage, wisdom and insight, love, and the power to live that self-forgetting love. To you now we entrust our loved ones, praying for their health and welfare, secure in the knowledge that whether we live, or whether we die, we are yours. We pray this in the name of the only one who saves us and makes our lives count, Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
